After a moment of silence, Momonga spoke.
"It's me. Are you Gion?" Momonga had an excellent memory and immediately recognized her voice.
Of course, it also helped that he knew she was coming.
"Where's Raleigh? Why isn't he answering the phone?" Gion asked angrily.
Momonga glanced at the sleeping Raleigh, thought for a long moment, and said.
"Raleigh is training and doesn't have time to answer. I happened to be passing by, so I picked up."
"Our ship will arrive at your branch soon. We'll talk more when we get there, Momonga."
Gion absolutely refused to believe Raleigh was training.
From the military academy to the East Blue, this guy had never spent a single day on training.
The intelligence reports mostly mentioned him either sleeping or fishing.
"Oh, okay Gion. We're on our way back now and should arrive around the same time as you."
"Hmph!" Gion hung up decisively.
She had nothing bad to say about Momonga—he was hardworking and capable.
But as for Raleigh, she just couldn't stand the sight of him.
...
Momonga hung up, glanced at the sleeping Raleigh, and didn't think much of it.
Everyone at headquarters knew Raleigh's personality.
The fact that he hadn't been punished meant he hadn't crossed the higher-ups' bottom line.
...
As the sunset faded, bathed in golden light, Raleigh's warship finally approached the branch.
However, the port was already occupied by a massive ship.
The enormous vessel towered over Raleigh's warship by more than ten meters.
When his ship entered the port and docked alongside the giant, the sunlight was completely blocked, casting its shadow over Raleigh.
"Huh? Did it get dark already?"
[Sleeping during patrol duty. Slacking Value +500]
At the bow of the larger warship stood a tall, long-legged beauty wearing the Marine "Justice" cloak, looking coldly down at Raleigh.
She took in the sun chair, the beach clothes, and the casually discarded Marine cloak nearby.
Whish!
A clear sound of a blade being drawn echoed through the air—the whisper of a famous sword.
It was Konpira, the Great Grade Sword, Gion's weapon.
The long sword drawn, a graceful figure descended at incredible speed.
The blade aimed directly at Raleigh's head.
"Raleigh, you bastard, you deserve to die."
Raleigh had just woken up when he saw a beautiful woman charging at him with a large sword.
'Those legs... damn, so white and long. Those two... damn, feels like the buttons are bearing more than they should. What a beautiful woman, would be even better if she wasn't coming at me with a sword...'
Raleigh sighed inwardly, then extended his right hand. Under Gion's astonished gaze...
Armament Haki: Hardening!
Without dodging, he directly reached for her blade.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing reverberated across the deck, sending shockwaves rippling outwards.
The air currents made Gion's cloak flutter violently, while also blowing away Raleigh's drowsiness.
"Gion, long time no see. Why bring out the sword as soon as we meet? A young lady like you should be more gentle."
Raleigh had now recognized her.
"..."
Gion remained silent, but inwardly she was completely bewildered.
She thought these six months Raleigh spent slacking off in the East Blue would be her chance to surpass him.
She was confident she could defeat the Raleigh from half a year ago.
But she never expected that Raleigh, who had always been slacking off, had quietly mastered Armament Haki.
Judging by the quality of it, he wasn't a beginner—he must have mastered it long ago.
'This guy! What's going on?!'
Gion had only intended to test Raleigh's strength.
If he hadn't improved, she planned to teach him a lesson and settle some old scores.
But she never expected her attack to be blocked barehanded.
"Raleigh, you bastard! If you've already learned Haki, why are you still staying in the East Blue?"
Raleigh scratched his head with his left hand.
"I don't think I have any obligation to report to you."
His blunt reply made Gion's chest heave with anger.
Clang!
Gion took a small step back, pulling her sword out of Raleigh's grip.
Then, with even greater speed, she swung it straight toward his face.
"Hey, hey... I haven't done anything to offend you, Gion. If you don't stop, I'll have to get serious!"
As he spoke, Raleigh tilted his body and effortlessly dodged the attack.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Gion hadn't been going all out at first, but after realizing how agile Raleigh was, she stopped holding back.
Konpira, sensing its master's fury, sliced through the air repeatedly, emitting a terrifying hum.
The air filled with flashes of blade light.
"Wow, is this the genius from headquarters?"
"So beautiful and so strong. I want to be her dog!"
A group of Marines on the deck watched, discussing excitedly.
"Captain Raleigh is stronger—those slashes can't even touch him."
"That's Captain Raleigh for you. Of course he's stronger!"
By now, Gion had fully entered her combat state, but Raleigh's figure was as slippery as an eel.
Blades of light swept past him, yet they couldn't even graze his clothes.
"Gion, I'll help you! Watch out, Raleigh, I'm coming too!"
With a strange shout, a burly figure leaped down from the large ship.
Moving at a speed comparable to Soru, a rough-looking face instantly appeared in front of Raleigh.
"Tokikake? Why are you attacking me too?"
Tokikake appeared, muscles bulging, and threw a powerful punch aimed straight at Raleigh's chest.
'I'm the real genius of the Marines,' Tokikake thought triumphantly, already picturing Raleigh being sent flying.
BOOM!
Tokikake's powerful fist struck Raleigh's chest.
A violent gust of air sent dust flying.
But Tokikake froze.
Even though Raleigh had been hit by his full-force punch, he didn't move an inch.
He only frowned slightly.
'Damn it!' Tokikake's pride was wounded.
It felt as though his fist had struck a massive mountain.
'This isn't right! This isn't how it was supposed to go! A main character like me should dominate the scene!'
Gripping her famous sword, Gion shouted, "Tokikake, what are you doing? Hurry up and use your real strength!"
'If you're so good, you try,' Tokikake thought, immensely frustrated.
He gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, and exerted force, the muscles on his arms swelling once more.
Another powerful punch landed squarely on Raleigh's chest!
BOOM!
A louder sound erupted, and a powerful gust of wind sent Tokikake's cloak fluttering wildly.
Yet Raleigh's body remained completely unmoved.
Tokikake was utterly shocked.
'Could this be the Marines Six Styles—Iron Body? No! Iron Body requires accelerating blood flow to contract the muscles. But this feeling... what else could it be?'
"Tokikake! What are you doing? Are you even trying?!" Gion roared angrily.
Tokikake was too embarrassed to admit he had already given it his all.
He could only rapidly swing his fists, raining down a storm of blows.
Raleigh's upper torso was completely engulfed in the shadow of Tokikake's punches.
Normally, this move's power was no less than that of small artillery shells.
Wherever it struck, it would shatter.
But now, despite being relentlessly pummeled, Raleigh showed no effect.
He stood as steady as an immovable pillar.
'No effect at all?! Impossible...'
Tokikake was beginning to doubt his own existence.
An unbelievable conclusion surfaced in his mind.
Could it be... that Raleigh had already reached the level of a Commodore?!